Happiness
by perfectcrime
Summary: What if Forrest and Max were to have met during the war? Something that come to me while watching Forrest Gump today. Max/Forrest friendship. Stays mostly cannon with both fandoms. Erring on the side of caution due to some swearing.


Title: Happiness

Fandom: Across the Universe, Forrest Gump

Chracters: Forrest Gump, Max, Lucy, Leiutenant Dan

Summary: What if Forrest and Max were to have met during the war? Something that come to me while watching Forrest Gump today. Max/Forrest friendship. Mostly stays with cannon for both fandoms.

Warning/Author's Note: I wrote this in script style so I could practice the format for Script Frenzy in April. I think it helped me a lot. Unfortunatly, when I put it in the fanfiction the formatting fell apart. It's a little chotic, but I like it.

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EXT.--PLATOON FIVE, VIETNAM--DAY--EST.

MAX is carrying his army bag and following a shirtless LIEUTENANT DAN.

EXT.--PLATOON FIVE, VIETNAM--DAY--CONTINUOUS

DAN So you see there are only two real rules in this here Platoon. Number 1: Keep your feet clean. Number 2: Don't do anything stupid like get yourself killed, you just leave that to me.

MAX Yes Sir.

MAX and DAN reach a tent where FORREST, BUBBA, and TEX are sitting. BUBBA is cleaning his gun, FORREST and TEX are writting letters.

DAN This is where you'll be staying. Now go ahead and get settled, and keep your nose out of trouble.

MAX puts his stuff on the last empty bed in the tent. Dan leaves.

MAX Hey, how you doing.

FORREST I'm good, how are you?

MAX (shrug) Alright.

FORREST (looking up from his letter)

What's your name?

MAX I'm Max.

FORREST I'm Forrest, Forrest Gumpp. And that there (points at BUBBA) is my best friend Bubba.

BUBBA Forrest and Me's, we're gonna start a Shrimpping buisness after this here war is done.

EXT.--VIETNAM WILDERNESS--DAY

FORREST, BUBBA, MAX and the rest of Platoon 5 are walking through the rain. All the sudden is stops raining.

FORREST Looks like God decided to turn off the sprinklers.

MAX Looks like it man, looks like it.

Shots are fired. MAX and FORREST duck. BUBBA gets hit and falls. MAX stays down, scared. FORREST gets right back up and starts running.

MAX Where the hell are you going man?

FORREST (Over his sholder) Jenny told me to just keep running.

EXT.--VIETNAM WILDERNESS--DAY

FORREST is running through the thinning trees, away from the gunfire. Suddenly he realizes that no one is around him.

FORREST Bubba!

FORREST runs back and forth bring back a wounded solider. One is MAX. One is LIEUTENANT DAN. One is TEX. The last is BUBBA.

FORREST runns around making sure everyone is okay. When everyone is settled he sits next to MAX.

MAX How'd you do that man?

FORREST I just kept running. That's what Jenny told me to do.

MAX This Jenny of yours is she a nice girl?

FORREST Yeah, she's been real good to me. She's always telling me how to do things good. Jenny's real smart. I don't know what'd I'd do without my Jenny.

EXT.--VIETNAM WILDERNESS--TWILIGHT

MAX, FORREST and others walk together through the forest. Everything around them is quiet.

FORREST What about you Max?

MAX What about me Forrest?

FORREST Where'd you come from?

MAX I'm living in New York City.

FORREST How far is that from Alabama?

MAX (laughing) Pretty far, my friend pretty far.

FORREST Maybe I'll go there sometime, when there here war is over with. I haven't been many places 'cept here and home.

MAX Maybe you will Forrest, maybe someday we'll all get out of hell-hole and be able to go someplace else.

Gun fire sounds in the distance and everyone drops down to their stomachs. A beat. Nothing happens so the soilders get up and continue walking.

FORREST Do you have a girlfriend Max?

MAX No. I have a family of friends in New York and I wish the god-damn army never made me leave.

FORREST doesn't know what to say to this so they walk in silence.

FORREST Max?

MAX Yeah?

FORREST I'm glad you're here. Without you, I wouldn't have anyone willing to talk to me right now.

The sound of a bomb being dropped makes everyone stop where they are. Suddenly chaos erupts. Flashes of light go off all around them and everyone ducks for cover.

When the smoke clears FORREST can be seen. He sits up and looks around. No one else can be seen.

FORREST Max? Lieutenant Dan? Anyone?

FADE OUT

FADE IN

Int.--hospital, vietnam--day

FORREST is laying in bed on his stomach. LEIUTENANT DAN is next to him. On his other side MAX is wheeled into the shot. MAX has a bangade around his head.

FORREST Max! You're alive. I didn't see you anywhere.

MAX (obviously out of it) Happiness is a warm gun... Finger on your trigger...

Outside two bombs can be heard going off followed by two shots.

MAX (cont') Happiness.

FADE OUT

FACE IN

INT.--JUDE AND LUCKY'S APARTMENT, NEW YORK--DAY

MAX and LUCY enter. MAX sits down at the table. LUCY comes to join him with two cokes.

MAX is upset, but it's not clear what he's upset over. LUCY twists off the top of her coke bottle and lets the top spin to a stop on the table.

MAX What happened?

LUCY He was arrested. (a beat) We both were. He didn't have the right papers to prove he was here legally, so they kicked him out.

MAX Just like that?

LUCY nods. MAX picks up his coke, then puts it down.

MAX Do we have any beer?

LUCY Not anymore.

MAX gets up to go out. He opens the door, but before he goes out he turns to LUCY.

MAX There's this guy I met in Vietnam. He was just an all around happy guy. He saved my life.

(a beat) Maybe if you would stop with your riots and media attention and were just happy with your life then maybe you could actually save something. Maybe things would be different.

6. LUCY You mean maybe Jude would still be here?

MAX stops again. He looks LUCY in the eye.

MAX Yeah, maybe he would be. Guess we'll never know now.

MAX leaves, leaving the door ajar behind him. LUCY grips her coke bottle until her knuckles turn white. She begins to silently cry.

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Love it? Hate it? Should I never try scripts/crossovers again?


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